Memoir Writing Prompt

It’s Valentine’s Day

Time for a memoir writing prompt on this Valentine’s Day. You may be cooking something special today. You may be planning a romantic evening out. You may be figuring out how to enjoy the evening when you know you’ll be alone.

There are so many moods of Valentine’s Day. But if you are working on your memoir, it is a timely moment to consider the emotion of love and what it means to you. With that thought in mind, I realized that a brief writing prompt could help you delve into your feelings of love.

Memoir Writing Prompt

1. Write the phrase “Love is” on a sheet of paper or in a new computer document.

2. Create at least 20 lines with that phrase.

3. Go back and turn the phrase into a sentence.

You’ll find that the first few sentences come from the top of your head. But as you go down the page, line by line, you will start digging deeper into what love means to you. Try to feel the emotion as you write. Let the feeling lead you to mention people you love, people who have influenced your sense of love. Let the feeling remind you of places where you have felt love. Write what love meant to you when you were in high school, in college, now. Write about ways that love can make you laugh, can make you cry. Consider the fullness of love in your love, past and present.

Return to this memoir writing prompt at various times on Valentine’s Day. Your mind will wrap itself around forgotten thoughts about love.

And remember, “Love is” lets you cherish yourself and your work on your memoir for it is an expression of love.

Writing about our lives is not all a matter of looking backward. We can reflect and see how we can influence our futures as well. Today’s writing prompt is designed to help you think about how you can expand your sense of family.